S23 Ep.8: Lorenzo's Solo

THESE ARE SOLEY MY OPINIONS AND ARE NOT INFLUENCED FROM THE THOMAS & FRIENDS FANBASE

LORENZO'S SOLO

Written by
Becky Overton

Directed by
Dianna Basso

Produced by
Ian McCue (HIT/Mattel)
Tracy Blagdon (Jam Filled)

Plot
Lorenzo plays a little trick on his loyal coach, Beppe, 
but he discovers that taking the legendary opera star Dame Bella Canto to the music festival 
by himself isn't as fun as he thought it would be.

Air Date
22/10/19 - AUS

This episode does show that an international episode can work without Thomas. Show him a little bit so kids would know he's there and know that they are watching a Thomas episode. Yes naturally he is a lead character but other characters need their shine in the spotlight too after all it is called 'Thomas & Friends'. Heck he wasn't in the end of the episode too! 

It's nice to see a story focused towards the two, especially more towards Lorenzo who was a bit egotistical and cheeky towards Bepe. Also Dame Bella Canto shows she has a bit of sassiness and ego too that was until both her and Lorenzo know that a duo can be better than a solo. 

I also like how in the fantasy sequence, as it also fits in well in the episode's opera theme and it wasn't as over the top as some previous fantasy sequences were, Lorenzo and Dame Bella Canto were singing 'Funiculì, Funiculì' which was a neapolitan song from 1880 to commemorate the opening of the first funicular railway on Mount Vesuvius in the region of Campania. So it's quite fitting to see the production team placing that in a kids show about railways. 

In the end, the episode was a good one. It's nice to see that the current team are steadily improving a lot more than last season in my opinion.

Episode Ratings (So far):

Free The Roads - 10/10
Chucklesome Trucks - 8/10
Heart Of Gold - 9/10
Panicky Percy - 6/10

Crowning Around - 10/10
First Day On Sodor - 8/10
Rangers Of The Rails - 7/10
Lorenzo's Solo - 8/10

Series Rating (So far):
66/80

S23 Ep.7: Rangers Of The Rails

THESE ARE SOLEY MY OPINIONS AND ARE NOT INFLUENCED FROM THE THOMAS & FRIENDS FANBASE

RANGERS OF THE RAILS

Written by
Davey Moore

Directed by
Dianna Basso

Produced by
Ian McCue (HIT/Mattel)
Tracy Blagdon (Jam Filled)

Air Date
21/10/19 - AUS

Plot
Emily longs for a bit of adventure and it's not long before her wish is granted.

It's nice to see an episode for Emily as a main character since S19, which was four years ago. Her last main centric role was in 'Best Engine Ever'. Plus her yearning for adventure seems pretty meta as well given as she hadn't had an episode to herself since then. Anyway this episode was pretty average but I pretty much enjoy it in the end. It's message that adventure can happen anywhere was nice, although I think some fans might use that and say 'So why not have episodes only on Sodor then?' while I understand that they would rather see more Sodor stories, it would not make sense if they keep it titled 'Big World, Big Adventures'. In the end, the story was average but it was a good watch.

                                                              Episode Rating (So far):

Free The Roads - 10/10

Chucklesome Trucks - 8/10

Heart Of Gold - 9/10

Panicky Percy - 6/10

Crowning Around - 10/10

First Day On Sodor - 8/10

Rangers Of The Rails - 7/10

Series Rating (So far):

58/70

S23 Ep.6: First Day On Sodor

THESE ARE SOLEY MY OWN OPINIONS ARE NOT INFLUENCED FROM THE THOMAS & FRIENDS FANBASE

FIRST DAY ON SODOR

Written by

Becky Overton

Directed by

Dianna Basso

Produced by

Ian McCue (HIT/Mattel)

Tracy Blagdon (Jam Filled)

Air Date

20/10/19 - AUS

Plot

Darcy makes some mistakes on her first day, but she soon makes up for it when everyone sees what she can really do.

I'll say this about the fantasy sequence. I hated it. I know it was a fantasy but it was the machine they made up and it was just the oddest thing coming out from Thomas. It felt like something out from 'Shed 17', watch it if you're OVER 18. It doesn't feel like something out from Thomas and it was really uncomfortable to watch it. Plus it feels a little jarring to hear a pop culture reference in Thomas as of course the machine was a reference to 'The Terminator'. Thankfully it was a fantasy sequence and not a real part of the show and while I do hate it, I'm not going to give this episode a low rating because of it.

But despite that, the episode was good as well. It's another 'prove there worth story' but it kind of reminds me of 'Harvey to the Rescue' with Darcy proving that she can dig tunnels more better than Alfie and Oliver. I think it could've been better if they have the other machines thinking they could do it better which would make Darcy a bit insensitive. It's also quite refreshing to see Nia being the moral guidance for Darcy instead of Thomas.

That's pretty much all I can say about this episode.

Episode Rating (So far):

Free The Roads - 10/10
Chucklesome Trucks - 8/10
Heart Of Gold - 9/10
Panicky Percy - 6/10

Crowning Around - 10/10
First Day On Sodor - 8/10

Series Rating (So far):
51/60

S23 Ep.5: Crowning Around

THESE ARE SOLEY MY OPINIONS AND ARE NOT INFLUENCED FROM THE THOMAS & FRIENDS FANBASE

CROWNING AROUND

Written by

Camille Can & Rose Johnson

Directed by
Dianna Basso

Produced by
Ian McCue (HIT/Mattel)
Tracy Blagdon (Jam Filled)

Plot
Rajiv learns that he can be really useful with or without his crown.

Air Date

3/09/19 - UK
18/10/19 - AUS

To me, this is how an international episode SHOULD be! Give situational moments like these to the international character and show them some character development along the way too which is something I believe that did well for Rajiv. He learnt that he can be really useful without his crown despite it being found by the Indian railway controller. I mean yeah he should show some growth by not being all fussed about it but I think he deserves it anyway as a reward. Even the fantasy sequence works well here too, as it's more about Rajiv thinking about the reaction he gets for his crown and less about some random gimmicky moments to sell a 'Greatest Moments' track master pack or a new exaggerating set. I believe the new writers can do well with characters like Rajiv and I hope we see more of them.

Episode Rating (So far):

Free The Roads - 10/10
Chucklesome Trucks - 8/10
Heart Of Gold - 9/10
Panicky Percy - 6/10

Crowning Around - 10/10

Series Rating (So far):
43/50

S23 Ep.4: Panicky Percy

THESE ARE SOLEY MY OPINIONS AND ARE INFLUENCED FROM THE THOMAS & FRIENDS FANBASE

PANICKY PERCY

Written by

Camille Ucan & Rose Johnson

Directed by
Dianna Basso

Produced by
Ian McCue (HIT/Mattel)
Tracy Blagdon (Jam Filled)

Air Date
17/10/19 - AUS

Plot
Percy causes confusion and delay by panicking over nothing.

I'm not all annoyed that Percy had reverted back to his fearful persona even though he was developed well from 'Tale of The Brave' but I often remember the line from 'Let's Be Brave'; 'You can be scared and still be brave.' Plus just because Percy can't be immune to fear all the time as well. I think Percy has the right to be scared for his friend because snow can be quite dangerous and fear is natural thing that we have to live whether it's something new or if we're not experienced. However despite that I think the episode should've gone with Nia. She herself never experienced with snow and you think after her encounter with it in China that she might be scared of it. It would expand with her inexperienced trope and would showcase to kids from other countries about learning something new. However since this episode is focused towards Percy, this should've been served as a sequel to 'Wish You Were Here', an episode I will review later on. It would make more sense for Percy's fear of Thomas' wellbeing given as how he goes around the world and the two episodes are written by the same writing duo.

There was one little moment that I like from this episode and that was Gordon thinking about Thomas first and his passengers second, honestly it's good to see Gordon and his caring nature shining more than his overused arrogant and boastful persona. In the end the episode was alright and it can be relatable to kids who do have anxiety.  

Episode Rating (So far):

Free The Roads - 10/10

Chucklesome Trucks - 8/10
Heart of Gold - 9/10
Panicky Percy - 6/10

Series Rating (So far):
33/40

S23 Ep.3: Heart of Gold

THESE ARE SOLEY MY OPINIONS AND ARE NOT INFLUENCED FROM THE THOMAS & FRIENDS FANBASE

HEART OF GOLD

Written by

Micheal White

Directed by
Dianna Basso

Produced by
Ian McCue (HIT/Mattel)
Tracy Blagdon (Jam Filled)

Plot
Old Toby tries to stop two thieves from stealing King Godred's crown.

Air Date

6/09/19 - UK
16/10/19 - AUS

I honestly quite like it that the production team had been transforming Toby to an engine being concerned on how he looks rather than just being old. The latter makes him more similar to Edward in my view, episodes like 'Toby Feels Left Out' showcases that as an example. Toby had to deal with himself being told that he looks different ever since Awdry's lifetime so the episode does respect Toby's roots as a character. Sure it's another 'prove his worth' storyline but I feel there's more of difference here compare to Edward. Edward's stories are more focused towards engines like Gordon or James learning their lesson on not being terrible to him ('Edward and Gordon', 'Edward's Exploit' and 'Old Iron' are examples) whereas Toby learns that he should be proud of what he looks like despite the unfair shaming of his looks, something that I think kids with self confidence issues can relate too. It was a really good episode and I definitely applaud Micheal White here on creating such a great story about the old tram engine.

It's also nice to see Glynn and Millie again and I hope with the mention of Toby being 'put on display' from Diesel is a sign for the Earl's so called railway museum is coming but I won't grasp on such hope since now that the idea is now three years old. The two robbers didn't make such impact but I think what could've been better is to put them in disguise as the castle workmen or guards and reveal them later on as robbers it kind of brings the air of mystery to the plot. Plus this is a bit of a nitpick but the scene with the guard holding the suit of armour could've been cut as I feel that was unneeded but I presume it was added there for the sake of 'more comedy' for Mattel when they were doing test audiences over the years that lead to the series' transformation. 

In the end this was a very good episode and it made me love Toby as a character again. 

Episode Rating (So far):

Free The Road - 10/10
Chucklesome Trucks - 8/10
Heart Of Gold - 9/10

Series Rating (So far):
27/30

S23 Ep.2: Chucklesome Trucks

THESE ARE SOLEY MY OPINIONS AND ARE NOT INFLUENCED FROM THE THOMAS & FRIENDS FANBASE

CHUCKLESOME TRUCKS

Written by

Davey Moore

Directed by
Dianna Basso

Produced by

Tracy Blagdon 

Air Date
4/09/19 - UK
15/10/19 - AUS

First time I saw this episode it was released in Mexico back in May 2019 and like Japan, they too have the english dub albeit it's the US voice cast. Anyway, I really enjoyed this episode and it has a nice message too. Just because others had a problem with something doesn't mean that the same will happen to you. Although when I first saw it I felt a little bit off with it and that was with Thomas, James and Percy. I thought their accidents were caused by Rebecca and that she wasn't responsible. But watching it again, I realised Rebecca wasn't fully responsible and the three engines were responsible for their own doing albeit concerned about Rebecca. 

Some might say that Rebecca came off as perfect in this episode but I think she was more oblivious to the trucks and their behaviour. Rebecca is a new member of the railway and would not know everything about her new home. I hope this leads to an episode of her realising that the trucks are troublesome, give her some conflict to deal with by being too confident about it due to last time. The trucks and their reaction towards Rebecca's enthusiasm was funny when they reached Vicarstown. Oh yeah and there were references to the past episodes and while they are a bit of a treat to see a moment from the classic series being reimagined in CGI, I think a mere mention of Thomas, Percy and James' mishaps with the trucks from the past could work as well with the short running time. The flashback recreation does chew up the running time to be honest and I think maybe the production team should down play on the references. 

But in the end, this was a very good episode and I'd enjoyed it. 

Episode Rating (So far):

Free The Roads - 10/10
Chucklesome Trucks - 8/10

Series Rating (So far):

18/20